Cuts and scrapes may occur all too frequently and easily. In such cases, knowing the proper treatment is important to prevent the infection from progressing and promote faster and easier healing. Even though you might not always need to go to the doctor, knowing what to do when you get a cut or a scrape can really help. Fortunately, Specialty Care Clinics Urgent Care is here to provide all the information you want for treating small wounds like cuts and scrapes.
CHECK IF EMERGENCY CARE IS NEEDED
A cut or scrape is often not life-threatening and is easily treated with over-the-counter medications. However, if the situation is critical, a medical expert should be consulted immediately, either at an urgent care facility or the emergency room. The Emergency Room should be your first port of call if you experience severe bleeding, lightheadedness from blood loss, or weakness or numbness on one side of the body.
However, if the cut or scrape is severe enough to require stitches, or is infected but not enough to go to the emergency room, urgent care centers like Specialty Care Clinics may offer quality care. The perfect place to seek high-quality treatment.
HOW TO TAKE CARE OF CUTS & SCRAPES WHEN THEY HAPPEN?
Whether you trip over while walking your dog, fall off your bike while riding in the morning, or sustain a minor injury while camping, you need to act as soon as possible to prevent the injury from getting worse. To do so, you must :
- If you don’t have access to soap and water, wash your hands first or sterilize them with a product that contains a lot of alcohol.
- Apply little pressure and cover the cut with gauze or a clean piece of fabric if it is actively bleeding in order to control the bleeding.
- Wash the cut or scrape with soap and water afterward (you can repeat this step multiple times if needed to ensure the wound is properly cleaned)
- Put on a little coating of antibiotic cream.
- Apply a bandage to the cut or scrape.
You should also determine if you might require medical care that cannot be provided at home, such as stitches, a tetanus injection, or another procedure.
HOW TO TELL IF A CUT IS INFECTED?
Checking for symptoms of an infection while a cut or scrape is healing is a crucial step in wound care. Any of the following symptoms might indicate an infection :
- Your cut or scrape’s surrounding region has become red.
- The surrounding region has become painful, swollen, or tender to the touch.
- The wound is dripping fluid, particularly an odorous or off-color fluid.
- From the cut or scrape area, red streaks are spreading.
- A fever has occurred, especially over 100.4° F.
- The lymph nodes are becoming bigger.
In order to be examined and avoid infection-related consequences, you should seek treatment from an urgent care facility as soon as these warning signals become apparent.
If you experience cuts or scrapes, visit Specialty Care Clinics and get quality treatment from experienced healthcare professionals, call us now.